more surprises

the W wall is being opened up to prepare for the removal of the sliding door.  by now it comes as no surprise that there's a surprise. 

behind the wallboard, styrofoam, presumably applied as insulation during the 1970s.  behind the styrofoam, beadboard. 

W wall interior

opened up, closed up

in order to get a good view into the front wall, it was necessary to open it up.  this was done both from the inside and from the outside.  the structure thus revealed provides guidance in choosing the approach and method for placing the doors and windows. 

opened up

further efforts will have to await the arrival of materials and, one presumes, some rather muscular colleagues.  until then the front is buttoned back up in an arrangement about which the only good that can be said is that it will be in place for a limited time. 

closed up

A Rose from Mrs Carter Emmons

[slightly OT from cottage renovations]

the Town's house histories show that the cottage at 15 the Circle had been in the Carter Emmons family from some time before 1886 through 1975.  at some point during that span of ownership a rose bush was placed in the back yard on the N side property line.  I have always associated it (whether correctly or not) with Mrs Edith Carter Emmons, whom I have never met as I know her only as a name appearing in the records.

as for the rose, I don't know its actual classification but believe it to be an older variety, predating the tea rose.  it is delicate of colour, fragrance and build -- there's not much point in picking the blossoms because they quickly fall apart after even the most careful handling.  exposure to hail or a vigorous spring rainstorm is often more than it can bear.  so it's best appreciated in its own location and on its own terms -- or, in this case, by the proxy of a digital image.

it generally blooms for about a week or so this time of year (but reliably after the flower show, although there was one year when the two overlapped -- a one-in-15 occurrence that's probably more like 1 in 20.  or 50).  sometimes I have collected the petals to dry them for a potpourri but most years I'm not organized enough to get that done.